Every Lord immediately opened the Lord Chat. Isaac did the same. A moment later, several new messages appeared before him.
[Seer]: Congratulations to [Cārus] for clearing the three areas of the Great Dungeon. We are happy to see a powerful Lord has been born in our Sector.
[Seer]: Additionally, Florathi Kingdom wishes to thank Cārus for defeating the leader and the strongest fighter of Purification Cult’s branch in our Sector. His actions have been of great help. The Florathi wishes to award him.
[Seer]: The Florathi is also saddened to see some of our people had joined hands with the Purification Cult. We thank Cārus for dealing with these traitors.
For a brief moment, the Lord Chat remained quiet. Then messages began appearing one after another at an astonishing speed.
One Lord immediately asked what Seer was talking about and whether there was any proof. Another questioned the claim about traitors inside Florathi Kingdom. Someone else outright declared that it had to be some kind of joke.
[IronWolf]: How can a new Lord do all that?
[SilverMist]: Didn’t Cārus become a Lord recently?
[StoneForge]: There is no way he cleared three areas of a Great Dungeon.
[GoldenOak]: Even after ten years, I still haven’t managed to do that.
[BloodTalon]: Are you stupid? Do you think Seer would lie?
[FrostWing]: Is there proof?
[ShadowVale]: What exactly happened?
The questions continued pouring in. Arguments broke out between different Lords as more people joined the discussion.
Some believed Seer immediately because of her status. Others demanded evidence before accepting such unbelievable claims.
The Lord Chat became absolute chaos.
At the same time, Isaac started receiving personal messages. Notification after notification appeared in the corner of his screen.
Most of them were asking the same thing. They wanted to know whether it was really true that he had defeated the leader of the Purification Cult’s branch and their strongest fighter. Some even asked what loot he got from them, and were willing to pay handsome prices if he was selling the loot.
As Isaac read through the messages, another announcement suddenly appeared in the public chat.
[MistQueen]: Everyone, Lord Seer is saying the truth. I and the other major Lords of our region are currently in Lord Cārus’ City. He did defeat members from the Purification Cult. I know Ki Beli, and I can confirm he—the strongest fighter of the Purification Cult’s branch—was one of the attackers. As for whether the other person was their leader, I do not know that. Everyone knows that the leader of the Purification Cult’s branch in our Sector has always hidden his true identity. However, if Lord Seer says it is the leader, I trust it.
The message alone caused another wave of reactions. Before the discussion could settle down, two more confirmations appeared.
[Ashroot]: I can confirm the same.
The chat became even more chaotic than before. Many Lords who had been questioning Seer suddenly fell silent.
After all, it was difficult to doubt the claims when several influential Lords publicly supported them. Even those who remained skeptical became noticeably more cautious with their words.
Isaac closed the chat window and looked up from the screen.
"Thank you," he said.
"Don’t mind it. We are not doing anything too special. After all, you can just post the video and everyone will know we are telling the truth," Lord Bella replied.
"You should post the video. Seeing your City’s strength will deter anyone from having funny ideas. After all, you have a Great Dungeon, a Saintess, a powerful Spirit Tamer, a Spirit, a high-rank Farming Talent, and a powerful Lord Talent," Lord Hass said.
Isaac considered the suggestion for a moment. Then he slowly nodded.
There was little point in hiding the recording now. He had already shown it to the Lords present in this room.
These people were far too experienced. Some likely possessed hidden recording methods, while others might have treasures capable of recreating memories as videos.
Even if Isaac tried to keep the footage secret, it would eventually spread. Not that he had any intention of hiding it in the first place.
He had always planned to reveal his City’s strength. Only by displaying power could he ensure others treated him seriously.
Respect often followed strength. Without it, many people would simply see him as someone they could push around.
More importantly, the strength shown in the recording was not everything he possessed. Several important trump cards remained hidden.
Isaac had no intention of revealing the clones of the East Sea Dragon King and the Dwarf King. Those assets would remain secret for now.
Meanwhile, Catherine had already reached the maximum stats possible for a Champion. He also intended to strengthen Eleanor in the near future. Then there was Celia. Her Class should advance tomorrow.
Beyond that, Isaac, Catherine, and Alice still had their Conqueror Candidate Trials ahead of them. The rewards from those trials would likely increase their strength even further.
By the time other Lords finished analyzing the video and searching for weaknesses, his territory would already be much stronger than it was now.
With that decision made, Isaac uploaded the recording.
The moment he saw the upload fee, he almost hissed. Twenty Gold Coins disappeared instantly from his account.
Fortunately, his expression remained calm. None of the Lords around him noticed anything unusual.
As the video began spreading throughout the Lord Chat, Isaac continued observing the reactions.
What surprised him most was Seer’s behavior afterward. She did not simply post her announcement and leave.
Instead, she continued participating in the discussion. Whenever questions arose, she provided clarification and reaffirmed her earlier statements.
More importantly, she repeatedly stated that Florathi Kingdom did not intend to punish Isaac. She openly thanked him for dealing with the traitors and helping the kingdom.
Isaac found that far more interesting than the reactions of the other Lords.
’Is she using me for some political benefit?’ he wondered.
The situation was fairly obvious.
Florathi Kingdom would never want outsiders learning that one of their powerful members, the Third Priest, had cooperated with the Purification Cult. Such information would severely damage the kingdom’s reputation.
If Isaac had revealed the matter himself, Florathi could have treated him as a troublemaker. They might have even used the situation as an excuse to pressure him later.
Instead, the Seventh Queen had publicly exposed the scandal first. Not only that, she had openly thanked Isaac and praised his actions.
By doing so, she had taken responsibility for the announcement. She had also publicly stated that Florathi would not punish him.
That single statement created a difficult situation for anyone within Florathi who wanted to target Isaac.
If they later attempted to punish him, their credibility of Florathi Kingdom would suffer. Countless Lords would immediately notice the contradiction. Even weaker Lords would realize that major internal conflicts existed within Florathi Kingdom. The kingdom’s image would suffer significant damage.
Isaac slowly leaned back in his chair as he considered the implications.
’The Seventh Queen is quite ruthless,’ he thought.
Even though she belonged to Florathi Kingdom, she was openly maneuvering against influential figures within her own faction. More impressively, she had done so in a way that appeared completely reasonable on the surface.
The Seventh Queen was not the only reason Isaac was in a good mood. The battle with the Third Priest could be witnessed by many people in Lord Chat and the news would spread soon to even more people. Once it did, his reputation as a powerful Lord would rise significantly.
More importantly, it would increase the popularity of his War God Domains. He might even get a possible Battle God Domain. That was the part Isaac cared about the most.
Isaac almost felt emotional thinking about it. He wouldn’t have to become the God of NTR. He wouldn’t have to become the God of Harem. He wouldn’t have to become the God of Lust.
Isaac was so happy that he could almost cry.
Unfortunately, a rational part of his mind immediately appeared to ruin the moment. Technically speaking, he had survived today’s battle because of Celia’s Physique upgrades. Those upgrades would never have happened so quickly without the Master of Dual Cultivation skill.
The skill was Transcendent Rank and originated from the Lust God Domain. It increased the effectiveness of all dual cultivation-related abilities by five hundred percent.
Because of that skill, both of Celia’s Physiques had advanced at an absurd speed. Without those upgrades, the outcome of today’s battle could have been very different.
Isaac stared at the rational part of his mind. Then he mentally slapped it down.
His response was simple: Shut up! Don’t try to gaslight me! I won’t become the God of NTR or Lust or Harem!
After successfully suppressing his own logic, Isaac left the room feeling much better. Some truths simply did not need to be acknowledged.
The meeting had already ended, but there were still things he needed to do. Together with Althea, he began visiting the minor Lords who had attended the gathering.
Major Lords looked down on these people, but Isaac had no intention of making the same mistake. Even if they lacked strength individually, building good relationships with them could provide many benefits in the future.
So he visited them one by one. He chatted with them casually, exchanged contact information, and discussed potential cooperation.
Some conversations revolved around trade. Others focused on future opportunities and possible exchanges between territories.
Althea’s presence beside him served a big purpose. As a representative of Florathi Kingdom, her visible friendship with Isaac sent an important message.
It showed everyone that Florathi did not intend to come into conflict with him. That reassurance made many Lords far more willing to discuss business opportunities with Isaac.
After all, nobody wanted to build a partnership with someone who might soon be targeted by one of the strongest factions in the Sector. Althea’s presence removed much of that concern.
Several hours passed before Isaac finally finished meeting everyone. By the end, he had established quite a few useful connections.
Just as he was preparing to return, an alarm suddenly rang from his device. The sharp sound immediately drew his attention.
Isaac instantly recognized it. He had personally set the alarm to notify him when Selene’s evolution was nearing completion.
Without wasting any time, he entered the Soulbind Pendant. The scenery around him shifted as he arrived inside the mansion.
He nodded to the maids, and quickly headed toward the room where Selene’s Lifepod had been placed. The maids had prepared the room earlier and made sure everything was ready for her.
When Isaac arrived, he saw Alice already standing near the pod.
Judging from her slightly hurried appearance, one could tell she had rushed over the moment the alarm rang for her. Worry was clearly visible on her face.
Neither of them spoke much as they waited. Their attention remained fixed on the Lifepod.
Five minutes passed slowly. Then a soft hiss echoed through the room.
The lid of the Lifepod gradually opened. A faint mist escaped into the air before slowly fading away.
Selene stepped out.
Her movements were unsteady, as though she was still adjusting to her evolved body. She blinked several times and took a cautious step forward.
Then she took another step.
A moment later, her balance suddenly gave way. Her legs weakened beneath her, and her body tilted forward.
Isaac moved immediately.
He reached out and caught her before Selene could hit the floor.
"H-Huh? Isaac?" Selene blinked, trying to clear her vision and look at the person holding her.